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How to Start Streaming on Twitch: A Step-by-Step Guide

How to Start Streaming on Twitch: A Step-by-Step Guide

Leave a Comment / Gaming, how to, Tech tips, Tech Tips / By

Are you ready to start your streaming journey on Twitch? Whether you’re a gaming enthusiast, a creative artist, or just someone with a story to tell, Twitch offers a platform to share your passions with the world. Let’s dive into how you can start streaming on Twitch with ease.

What is Twitch?

How to Start Streaming on Twitch: A Step-by-Step Guide

Image Source: dacast.com

Twitch is a popular live-streaming platform that has become the central hub of online entertainment, especially for gamers. It allows users to broadcast themselves playing video games, creating art, cooking, or engaging in various other activities while interacting with a live audience via chat. Originally focused on video game live streaming, Twitch has expanded to include streams dedicated to music, talk shows, and even TV series watch-alongs. The platform is known for its community-driven approach, enabling viewers to support their favorite streamers through subscriptions, donations, and interactive chat features. 

Create a Twitch Account

Creating a Twitch account is a straightforward process, allowing you to step into the world of live streaming and community interaction. Here’s how you can get started:

  • Go to Twitch.tv.

  • Click the “Sign Up” button, usually located at the top right corner of the page.

  • Fill in the required fields including username, password, date of birth, and email address.

  • Password: Use a strong password for security.

  • Check your email inbox and click the verification link to activate your account.

Essential Equipment for Streaming

To start streaming on Twitch, it is important to have the right equipment to ensure a smooth and engaging streaming experience. Here is a list of what you will need:

  1. Computer: A reliable and powerful computer is fundamental.

  2. High-Quality Webcam: A good webcam is important for visual interaction. This helps you personalize your stream and connect with your audience.

  3. Microphone: Audio clarity is essential. A high-quality microphone can significantly improve the audience experience.

  4. Headphones: Good headphones are important for monitoring audio and clear communication, especially in multiplayer games.

  5. Lighting: Proper lighting is important for visibility. Ring lights or softbox lights can help eliminate shadows and illuminate your face evenly.

  6. Internet Connection: A stable and fast internet connection is important for streaming. Wired connections (Ethernet) are generally more reliable than wireless connections.

  7. Streaming Software: Broadcasting your gameplay requires software like OBS Studio, Streamlabs OBS, or Xsplit.

  8. Green Screen (optional):Green screen can be used to overlay different backgrounds, making your stream more attractive.

Building Your Twitch Community

Building a Twitch community involves creating a welcoming and engaging environment where regular interactions and high-quality content encourage viewer participation and loyalty. Consistency in streaming, active engagement with the audience, and leveraging social media for promotion are key elements. Collaborating with other streamers and fostering a positive, inclusive environment also plays an important role in developing and maintaining a vibrant community on Twitch.

Monetizing Your Twitch Stream

Monetizing your Twitch stream involves taking advantage of various revenue streams such as viewer subscriptions, advertising, donations, and sponsorships. Twitch affiliates and partners can earn through subscriptions and Bits, while integrating external services like PayPal for direct donations. Engaging content and a dedicated audience base are key to attracting sponsorship and advertising revenue, with monetization becoming a mix of consistent streaming, community building, and strategic marketing.

Also Read: Saudi’s Tabby Gets $700 Million Credit Line From JPMorgan

Conclusion

In Conclusion, streaming on Twitch is an exciting venture that blends creativity, community engagement, and technical know-how. With the right equipment, a consistent streaming schedule, and a focus on creating engaging content, anyone can embark on this rewarding journey. Building a community and potentially monetizing your channel are achievable goals, making Twitch streaming a gratifying experience for both hobbyists and aspiring professionals.

Facebook

Facebook Is Launching Its New Gaming App Giving Competition To Twitch And Youtube

Leave a Comment / Social media, Tech News / By

The
gaming community is becoming more significant in today’s world with every
passing day. It has become a prominent source of income for many big companies.
Companies like Twitch and YouTube are very popular for streaming video games
for the gaming community. It is also a great opportunity for independent game
developers.

But, apart from Twitch and YouTube, Facebook also declared its new gaming application. The company will be launching the application today focusing mainly on the streaming community. Facebook is also thinking about the casual audience and hence will be also adding casual games in the application. It will include games like Words with Friends and similar types that can be played to kill time.

The
timing of the launch

It seems like, with the advent of the modern age, the orthodox of not enhancing the idea of gaming is eventually disappearing. Moreover, big companies like Google (Stadia), Twitch, YouTube, and now Facebook are trying hard to promote the gaming culture. But, with the pandemic holding us prisoners in our homes, the hype of gaming has increased overnight. In this outbreak, around $160 billion business in gaming is making success rapidly.

After, Google made the Pro version of Stadia free for two months and Trivia is back on track, this is the perfect timing. So, Facebook also decided to roll out its new gaming application and help people coping in this quarantine phase. Moreover, the gaming community also strengthens social interaction while maintaining social distancing at the same time.

Investing
in gaming is one of the top priorities

Facebook
has around 2.5 billion active monthly users. And, out of these 700 million
users shows an active interest in gaming content. So, Facebook was planning to
launch a gaming app around June. But, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Facebook
decided to prepone the launch in April.

Fidji
Simo, the head of the Facebook app said that it is important to invest in the
gaming community. Because it is not just a form of entertainment but also
connects and brings people together. She has also declared that many new
features will roll out eventually as they are currently focused on gaming. The
app will be available only on Android devices for the time being. After the
company receives permission from Apple, it will be available on iOS as well.
The new app was tested in Southeast Asia and Latin America for the past
eighteen months.

Facebook
Gaming

Facebook
has thrived since forever especially after acquiring Instagram and Whatsapp.
And, with the launching of this new app, it will give tough competition to
Amazon and Google as well. The company has been investing in the gaming sphere
for a very long time now. It has collaborated with many creators and hosted
many esports tournaments. Facebook Gaming is growing exponentially.

Facebook
Gaming has witnessed an increase of 210% hours watched within a single year
(2018-2019). StreamElements, a streaming software company has reported that the
company’s streamers have increased by 6%. And, along with that the average
number of viewers per hour has also increased by 78%. All these happened within
a single year.

Twitch
and YouTube are the main competitions in the market for Facebook Gaming. So,
the company followed its strategies closely and partnered with Gonzalo “Zero”
Barrios (Twitch streamer) and Corinna Kopf (YouTube personality).

New
features

Facebook
has also launched new tools that will help the users to stream videos. And,
more users will be attracted to the platform if the tools are simpler to use.
So, the company has added a “Go Live” button which will instantly help the
users to go live. Facebook has also launched the Level Up Program to help some
creators earn money through it.

This program is of immense advantage to those who are already streaming games on Facebook. They will get access to high-quality premium transcoding which includes 1080p and 60fps. Other features like unlocking Facebook Stars, limited access to beta products and features, and many more will be available. The user needs to create a “Gaming Video Creator” page and keep streaming videos for the next 14 days. These two are the prerequisites along with some other conditions and age bar.

Vivek
Sharma, Facebook’s Vice President got gaming said that the craze for becoming a
streamer increases every day. So, they are expecting the idea of live streaming
to boom within a few days maximum.

Justin Kan : The Serial Entrepreneur Who Founded the Lifecasting Platform Twitch

Founder, start-up, Story, Tech Story / By

Sometimes, the little thing we do can make a lot of difference in how we pursue our career, and moreover, our life. The founder of Justin.tv and Twitch.tv, Justin Kan shares a similar course of events, where he says that all the credit for is success goes to his mother, and the way, she used to assigned chores to him and his brothers when they were little kids. According to him, the methods they opted for carrying out those daily chores, has helped him learn the art of leadership and build a $1 billion empire for him. Kan is one of the youngest entrepreneurs who has started their career in the early 20s, and with their innovation have left their mark on the respective industries.

Justin Kan
Image Source: flickr.com

Kan was born on 16 July 1983, to Chinese immigrant parents. He has two siblings, Daniel Kan and Damien Kan. Daniel is also a young entrepreneur who has found another $1 billion company Cruise. Kan’s youngest brother Damiem is a software engineer at Alto Pharmacy.

Kan is a graduate from the Yale University, where he received a double major degree in physics and philosophy in 2005.

Founding Twitch

Initially, Justin launched Justin.tv, where he started broadcasting every moment of his daily life live, with a video camera tied to his cap. The platform live-streamed of what he did on a daily basis. This way, a new word ‘lifecasting’ was invented. Within less than a month of him lifecasting, his idea became famous, and he was invited to a few interviews by the leading media of the country, to know more about lifecasting as well as his platform, Justin.tv.

Later, Kan realised the potential of this platform and relaunched Justin.tv along with his friends Emmett Shear, Michael Seibel and Kyle Vogt, in 2007, as an internet startup, in San Francisco, California. The newly launched platform allowed people to add their own channels to it, and live stream. The company raised a seed funding from Y Combinator as well as a Series A funding with Alsop Louie Partners and Draper Associates.

Justin.tv became a similar platform like YouTube but allowed the users to broadcast for free. By the mid of 2007, the platform had 60 registered channels, and by the month of August 2007, it started registering international users, including from Australia, Brazil, UK, France, Netherlands and Sweden, etc. Within a year from the inception of Justin.tv, the platform had registered over 30,000 broadcasting accounts.

In March 2008, the platform added various different categories, including gaming, which later, became the most popular category having earned most of the active users. This led Justin to build another platform dedicated to gaming live streaming and inspired by the term twitch gameplay, Justin founded Twitch.tv, on 6 June 2011.

In the following two years, Twitch was registering 35 million unique visitors every month, and by the end of 2013, the company had hired over 100 employees.

The increased popularity of Twitch.tv led to the rebranding of Justin.tv, Inc., the parent company for both Justin.tv and Twitch.tv, to Twitch Interactive, on 10 February 2014. In the same month, the recorded number of views on Twitch.tv reached over 6.5 million.

In May 2014, news of Google planning to acquire Twitch started making rounds, and Twitch discontinued its services with Justin.tv in August 2014, to solely focus on Twitch.tv.

On 25 August 2014, Amazon acquired Twitch Interactive for an amount worth US$970 million.

Other Ventures

On 7 March 2011, Kan launched another video social media platform, named Socialcam, that allowed its users to record and share videos, using their mobile phones. This startup was acquired by Autodesk on 17 July 2012 for $60M. On 29 February 2012, Kan founded a service out-sourcing platform, that let the freelance service providers charge $25 per hour for any type of service. Later, the startup was bought by Handybook.

In early 2015, Kan launched another startup along with his college friend, Ranidu Lankage, naming it ‘The Drop’, which is a music discovery platform.

In March 2014, Kan joined Y Combinator as a partner, guiding the new startups with their investments. After working for three years with Y Combinator, Kan left the company to found his own investment firm named Zero-F, in March 2017.

In 2017, Kan founded a full-service corporate law firm for high-growth companies, named Atrium, where he works as the CEO.